2000
#10,434
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,829
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.05
Rare Last name
Hunsberger
Derived from a German place name meaning "hunting mountain."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,096 Americans carry the last name Hunsberger. That puts it at #11,204 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.90 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 110,709 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hunsberger surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
3.1K
1 in 110,709
Census rank
#11,204
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,700 bearers of the surname Hunsberger in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.90 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11204th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hunsberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hunsberger
The surname Hunsberger originated in Germany, where it first appeared around the 12th century. It is derived from the German words "huns," meaning "belonging to the Huns," and "berg," meaning "mountain." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived near a mountain associated with the Huns or had some connection to that group.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name dates back to 1284, when a Henricus Hunnesberger was mentioned in a document from the town of Worms, located in the Rhineland-Palatinate region of Germany. The name was also found in various medieval records and manuscripts from other parts of Germany, such as Bavaria and Saxony.
In the 16th century, the Hunsberger name appears in records from the town of Herborn, located in the German state of Hesse. This may have been the place of origin for some branches of the family before they began to migrate to other parts of Europe and eventually to North America.
One notable bearer of the Hunsberger name was Johannes Hunsberger (1535-1603), a German theologian and reformer who was a prominent figure during the Protestant Reformation. He served as a professor of theology at the University of Heidelberg and was known for his writings on religious doctrine.
Another early bearer of the name was Hans Hunsberger (1567-1638), a German artist and engraver who was active in the early 17th century. His works, which included engravings and etchings, are held in various museums and collections across Europe.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, several Hunsberger families emigrated from Germany to Pennsylvania, where they settled in areas such as Lancaster County and Philadelphia. One of the earliest arrivals was Jacob Hunsberger, who was born in Germany in 1698 and came to Pennsylvania in the 1720s.
Another notable figure was John Hunsberger (1784-1858), a farmer and landowner in Pennsylvania who served as a member of the state legislature and was involved in local politics. He was also a member of the Mennonite Church and played a role in the religious life of his community.
In the 19th century, the Hunsberger name continued to spread across North America, with families settling in various parts of the United States and Canada. One prominent individual from this period was Amos Hunsberger (1825-1901), a Canadian businessman and politician who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario and was involved in various commercial ventures.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hunsberger
Among Census respondents with the surname Hunsberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hunsberger bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Hunsberger surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 2,509
- Two or more races3.0% · 80
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 61
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 24
- Black or African American0.7% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hunsberger
Hunsberger appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#11,142
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,842
+13 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 0.96
Rank movement Down 708 places
2020
#11,204
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,700
-142 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Down 62 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,434 | 2,829 | 1.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,142 | 2,842 | 0.96 | +13 bearers (+0.5%) | Down 708 places |
| 2020 | #11,204 | 2,700 | 0.90 | -142 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 62 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Hunsberger surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #11,142 | #11,204 | -0.6% |
| Count | 2,842 | 2,700 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.96 | 0.90 | -5.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hunsberger bearers went from 2,842 to 2,700 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 62 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,142 to #11,204.
FAQ
Hunsberger surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hunsberger?
Name Census estimates that about 3,096 living Americans carry the surname Hunsberger. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 110,709 residents.
How common is Hunsberger?
Hunsberger ranks #11,204 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.90 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,700 people with the surname Hunsberger. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,096), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.9 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.90 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Hunsberger.
Has Hunsberger become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hunsberger went from 2,842 recorded bearers to 2,700. That is a decrease of 142 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,142 to #11,204.
What does the Census say about the background of Hunsberger?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hunsberger, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.3%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Hunsberger in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (2,509 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hunsberger appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Two or More Races (3.0%), Hispanic (2.3%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Hunsberger (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Hunsberger mean?
Derived from a German place name meaning "hunting mountain." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Hunsberger (0.90 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Hunsberger?
Want to know how common the surname Hunsberger is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.